Lawyers are among the key players in environment and energy policy, but the most prominent legal industry donor to lawmakers active in this area is not an industry or environmental group.

Instead, it's that favorite bugbear of big business: the trial lawyer bar.

According to campaign finance data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) for E&E Daily, the American Association for Justice (AAJ) -- the main lobbying group for the plaintiffs' bar -- is the top dog when it comes to campaign contributions to those serving on four important congressional committees with sway over environmental policy. Its donations skew heavily Democratic.

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The group crops up on the list of top six legal industry donors to lawmakers serving on the House Energy and Commerce, House Natural Resources, Senate Environment and Public Works and Senate Energy and Natural Resources committees (for complete data click here).

In the current election cycle, AAJ is the No. 1 legal industry donor to members of the House Energy and Commerce and House Natural Resources committees, having donated $139,000 and $74,500 to the relevant lawmakers respectively. It is the third-biggest legal industry donor to lawmakers serving on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee ($37,500) and the fourth biggest to members of the Senate Environment and Public Works panel ($59,500).

CRP compiled a list of the top six legal donors for each of the committees. The numbers include political action committee (PAC) and individual donations from lawyers associated with various high-profile Washington firms. Individuals can give $2,500 to a candidate per election cycle and $5,000 to a PAC.

Aside from AAJ, names that figure prominently on the list include firms like K & L Gates, DLA Piper and Akin Gump. Most of the firms listed have active government relations practices.

AAJ's giving pattern is in keeping with its position as a heavy spender in federal elections. It stands eighth in CRP's list of all-time top donors.

In the 2012 election cycle, it is so far the biggest legal and lobbying industry donor, having contributed more than $1.2 million, according to CRP.

The tilt toward Democratic lawmakers is easily explained. For trial lawyers, the main reason they are politically active is to prevent corporate America and its allies in Congress (usually Republicans) from passing laws that would restrict the ability of members of the public filing suit against companies over such issues as product liability, not to mention environmental contamination.

Trial lawyers often work on a contingency fee basis, meaning they get a cut of any damages won. In major class-action cases, that number can be in the millions. Advocates for what is known as tort reform would like to put an end to that practice.

"Needless to say, trial lawyers don't think that's a good policy, so they tend to give to Democrats," said Brett Kappel, an expert on campaign finance law at Arent Fox.

Asked to comment on its donations, AAJ issued a statement saying that its PAC reflects the organization's goal of supporting "candidates that are committed to strengthening the civil justice system and are opposed to efforts to weaken basic legal protections."

Skewed numbers

The intervention of the trial lawyers inevitably skews the overall numbers. It is one of the reasons data suggests that the legal industry donates more to Democrats than Republicans.

But it's not the only reason.

One Republican lawyer, who declined to be identified, speculated that a lot of lawyers in the Washington area, including those at corporate law firms, lean Democratic, especially when it comes to social issues.

"The richest people I personally know are all big Democrats," he said.

Data shows how the top six lawyer/law firm contributors to relevant congressional committees favor Democrats over Republicans, thanks in large part to the American Association for Justice. The lighter color denotes the 2010 election cycle, while the darker color refers to the 2012 cycle. Data courtesy of the Campaign for Responsive Politics.

Joseph Sandler, a former general counsel at the Democratic National Committee, put it down to personal relationships between attorneys and candidates, which sometimes take precedence over purely business matters. This is reflected in individual donations rather than PAC donations.

"There are a lot of contributions from individual lawyers whose practices have nothing to do with lobbying," Sandler said.

Scott Segal, a partner at Bracewell & Giuliani, stressed the importance of separating out individual donations from PAC donations.

His firm's "giving patterns track the interests of our clients," he conceded.

But individual donations are different. Lawyers might take into account many other factors when making a decision on whether to donate, including personal relationships with candidates and their own political inclinations, he said.

As a firm that specializes in energy policy and has an active government relations practice, Bracewell & Giuliani is one of the names that crops up on the list of top law firm donors. In the current election cycle, its PAC and individual lawyer donations combined are the third highest among law firms to members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

The total is $40,699, with just over $31,000 going to Republicans and $9,500 going to Democrats, according to CRP.

Segal said the firm's donations are based on the specifics of a particular issue and not necessarily the party affiliation of the member. It could take into account the regional political factors that can sway members over an energy-related matter regardless of which party they represent, Segal noted. The firm would also take into account whether a candidate has a leadership role, he added.

"I don't believe the giving of ... contributions can be identified with one factor," Segal said.

'Something they resent'

Overall, lawyers and law firms are the third-biggest donors in the 2012 federal election cycle to date, ahead of such influential powers as the oil and gas industry, according to CRP. Those numbers do not include lobbying spending.

Among the big spenders as of this month, including both PAC and individual donations, are Akin Gump ($983,896), Patton Boggs ($708,158), Kirkland & Ellis ($578,870) and Skadden ($541,637).

As lawyers are both familiar denizens of Capitol Hill and known to be deep-pocketed, they are easy marks for fundraising consultants, attorneys familiar with the process say.

Firms with prominent practice groups specializing in, say, oil and gas issues, are regularly approached both by clients and representatives of members of Congress whose committees they might have business before, Kappel said. Such donations would be sought from the firm's PAC and from the individual lawyers.

"It's no different to any corporate relationship," Kappel said.

Lawyers who have experienced such requests all stress that despite the widely held notion that they and their lobbyist cohorts actively seek to pour cash into the political process, the opposite is actually the case.

Sandler insisted that lawyers and lobbyists dread receiving invitations to fundraisers.

"This is something they resent to a large extent," he added.